My 6 week journal--Eat to Live

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Brian.Evans

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Phillip L posted a thread last November about his "Battle of the Bulge". This is the original thread that inspired me. I hope more people can be inspired by it. http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...fought-and-i%94ve-won-the-battle-of-the-bulge I emailed him and asked for more information. He was extremely gracious and emailed me YouTube videos and the book on "Eating to Live". I am coming on board with this 100%.

My background:
I'm 28, married, five kids. We are an extremely on the go type family, with football, softball, gymnastics, doctor's appointments, ect., ect. I came home from Afghanistan at 225 lbs on April 1, 2010. I lost 55 lbs while overseas, mostly due to piss poor food. I felt and looked GREAT. I had energy and stamina. I liked how I looked. I'm a big guy, with a fair amount of muscle, so 225 is ribs sticking out, hip bones showing kind of weight for me. Little by little I gained every bit of it back. August 2011 I went low carb for a few weeks and dropped 20ish lbs in time for our wedding anniversary. Then gained it all back. The past six months have been very stressful with a sick little baby girl and a wife that is ill with some kind of inflammatory illness that the doctors can't figure out what's wrong. I eat, and eat, and eat to de-stress. It has caused my weight to go from 275 to 280 to 290 to somewhere north of 300 lbs. I don't know exactly because our scale only goes up to 298 and then it displays ERROR.

The biggest thing was when we took the three oldest kids skating this weekend. About 15 months ago, I took my 9 year old on a daddy date before her little sister was born. We went skating. I skated for quite a while and only stopped because she got tied of falling down. This time, I would skate two or three laps and have to sit for a few minutes to catch my breath and let my heart slow down.

Last week I walked up one flight of stairs to get a screaming baby. I was changing her diaper and got very dizzy and out of breath. My pulse was over 160! From one flight of stairs!!

I'm 28. I only 28 years old. I AM ONLY 28 YEARS OLD!! I just kept saying that to myself. This is ridiculous!!! My maternal grandfather died from a heart attack before I was born. My maternal grandmother died from CHF exacerbation secondary to extreme obesity and horrible diabetes. My paternal grandmother beat breast cancer. My paternal grandfather beat prostate cancer, but had a massive, multi coronary artery heart attack and then several mild strokes. I won the genetic lottery. My back hurts almost constantly, which is new in the last 2 months, I feel horrible, my clothes don't fit. This sucks. I'm not able to be a good dad or husband because I feel like crap and have no energy ever. I am working two jobs right now, which equals about 95+ hours a week plus with my wife hardly able to walk some days due to pain I'm taking on a lot of the household duties. I need my nutrition to be right so my body doesn't suffer. This sucks.

--------------------

Now, what to do? I never come into the Community section. Almost never anyway. Yesterday on the way to my part time job I saw Phillip's post almost on accident. I emailed him immediately, watched the videos, and am reading the book. This is a life change I have to make to live how I want to live. This time, I'm not weighing myself. I don't care. I want my clothes to fit better. I want to have more energy. I want to live to see my great grand kids. The old way stopped yesterday.

Today is the first day of the rest of my life.

It is my hope that by putting myself online, in front of hundreds of thousands of people that it gives me the power to stick with it. Maybe I can have some accountability as well. Iron sharpens iron, and so on. I'm going to keep a journal on this thread. Maybe I will post everyday, maybe twice a day, sometimes not for a couple days. All I ask is if I haven't posted in a few days, shoot me an email and ask what's up. I need help. I've struggled with food addiction all my life. I like to eat. There can be no try with this. Only do.

Thanks everyone.

-Brian
 
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Plan some activities. I'm sure your children will be happy to do some stuff with you. Have you seen the outdoorsy people forums where they go camping and hiking with their families?

Best of luck! I know you can do it, you just need to make a little time and keep your promise.
 
Also, feel free to comment, ask questions, or just post in this thread. This isn't just for my journal.



DAY 1---APRIL 9, 2013

Breakfast
I had several plum size grapes and a fair sized handful of baby carrots on the way to work. Water too. Contrast this to my old normal workday breakfast of Mt Dew and pop tarts. That was at about 645-710ish. I had a banana at 915 and I'm beginning to feel a little pain in my belly, like a food pain, but different somehow. Also, I don't feel sleepy, jittery, sluggish, or anything else like I did yesterday. I actually feel pretty good.

Lunch
Ate around noon. A bag of romaine (10 oz). Made some mashed beans with a can of black beans, a can of kidney beans, chopped garlic, parsley. Simmered then mashed them with a spoon. Covered the lettuce with a portion of the beans. Looked very nice on the plate and tasted great. Dessert was an orange.

However, all this fiber is getting to me, not to add too much information. Side effect or benefit?

Dinner
I had another huge salad with the rest of my mashed beans. Dessert was a banana. Later had some strawberries.
 
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Doughnut said:
Plan some activities. I'm sure your children will be happy to do some stuff with you. Have you seen the outdoorsy people forums where they go camping and hiking with their families?

Best of luck! I know you can do it, you just need to make a little time and keep your promise.
Click to expand...

How apropos that the first person commenting is screen named Doughnut! I literally laughed out loud. That makes me happy.

We love hiking, we actually have a really great section of trails near our house. We need to get out there. The kids do in fact love it! I'm taking my oldest on a man-cation the end of May. An overnight canoe trip. I have to be fit for that.

Thank you for the encouragement. I need it.
 
medicevans said:
Also, feel free to comment, ask questions, or just post in this thread. This isn't just for my journal.



DAY 1---APRIL 9, 2013

Breakfast
I had several plum size grapes and a fair sized handful of baby carrots on the way to work. Water too. Contrast this to my old normal workday breakfast of Mt Dew and pop tarts. That was at about 645-710ish. I had a banana at 915 and I'm beginning to feel a little pain in my belly, like a food pain, but different somehow. Also, I don't feel sleepy, jittery, sluggish, or anything else like I did yesterday. I actually feel pretty good.
Click to expand...

Where is the protein?
Maybe you should do protein shake, greek yogurt, or even 2 eggs with those veggies/fruits. Will help the stomach pains.

The weight always comes off slow, and comes back on so fast.

Diet is the key to weight loss, and aerobic activities make a strong heart.
Remember a diet is what you eat, not a word that means time to lose weight.
Keep those carbs moderate to low, and calories at around 2000 ish, the bad weight will come off!
 
The protein comes in small doses of meat and heavy legumes with lots of fiber. Meat as a garnish, not as the main course.

I have changed my thinking slightly. Originally, I believed hunter/gatherers ate primarily meat with a bit of nonmeat. I think, after doing more research, that they probably ate heavy meat upon killing the animal, then less and less meat until the next kill, supplementing their diet with more gathered products until the next kill. Animal is high in protein but high in calorie output to get that protein too.

Long story short: no processed crap food, heavy fruits and vegetables (carbs but not processed carbs and the carbs are tied to fiber), moderate nonprocessed animal products, no soda, eating like God intended humans to eat. This can't be bad. Calories will naturally be lessened and I think protein, fat, and carbs will stay in a good ratio (albeit non-USDA approved ratio, don't get me started on how the USDA has killed our generate with the food pyramid). Good fats, good protein, good carbs. Everything in moderation. Weight loss is a goal, but the supreme, above all others, goal is; eating right so I feel better and can do the things I need and want to do.
 
mag1 said:
Where is the protein?
Click to expand...

From Eat To Live:
"Research shows that those who avoid meat and dairy have lower rates of heart disease, cancer, high blood pressure, diabetes, and OBESITY."

"We have been indoctrinated since childhood to believe that animal protein is a nutrient to be held in high esteem. We have been brought up with the idea that foods are good for us if they help us get bigger faster. Nothing could be further from the truth."

"Which has more protein - one hundred calories of sirloin steak or one hundred calories of broccoli?"

If someone tells you you're not getting enough protein by eating fruits and vegetables, ask them "How much meat or eggs or yogurt or protein shakes a gorilla eats?"

If you're hungry EAT. What should you eat? G.B.O.M.B.S. as much as you can and as little as you can of everything else. Don't know what G.B.O.M.B.S. are. It's in the videos, and the book and my post.
 
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We aren't gorillas. Totally different metabolism and digestion.
I dont wanna look like a gorilla! Just weird.

Proteins are the building blocks of our body. Muscle burns calories, not fat.

Go to bed hungry, and you will lose weight. I know from experience.

Never heard of losing weight and not being hungry. It is innate.

Dont get where you are coming from PhiL
 
PhilL said:
What should you eat? G.B.O.M.B.S. as much as you can and as little as you can of everything else.
Click to expand...

For those of you who don't want to go searching, its Greens, Beans, Onions, Mushrooms, Berries and Seeds. Link.
 
mag1 said:
We aren't gorillas. Totally different metabolism and digestion.
I dont wanna look like a gorilla! Just weird.

Proteins are the building blocks of our body.
Click to expand...

A few facts are in order. The majority of calories in greens comes from protein. Greens are higher in protein per calorie than steak. Greens = protein. Thats the point, and its the answer to the skeptic's question of "where is the protein in your vegan diet?". Link.
 
medicevans said:
However, all this fiber is getting to me, not to add too much information. Side effect or benefit?
Click to expand...

I told you that you would lose 10 pounds this week, hint: it's not going to be FAT.

If you're anything like me, you should be pissing like a race horse and having a brown snake crawl out of you on a regular basis.

The answer to your question: Benefit!
 
mag1 said:
Dont get where you are coming from PhiL
Click to expand...

It's coming from the book by Dr. Joel Fuhrman, "Eat To Live".
I'm never hungry and I lost 65 lbs. last year. I expect to lose another 25 - 30 lbs. between now and September, and I will never go to bed hungry.

Cool huh?
 
Congrats on the weight lost so far--keep up the good work! That would be really hard for me, as I lack the discipline. Especially while at college! There is just too much temptation..

Quick question, are nuts allowed in the diet?
 
This is going to be the first of the "real tests"-being up all night working. Will it be enough to keep away the 0130 Taco Bell run? So far so good. I feel pretty good, other than being tired, and my stomach has calmed down. I wasn't sluggish and didn't feel overloaded today. There is nothing worse than reading a heavy refined carb meal then running two or three back to back calls. Talk about feeling like crap. I didn't have that today. That alone is worth the price of admission.
 
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There are a few things at Taco Bell on their healthy menu that are not too bad but most of it contains enough fat and calories blow a weeks worth of nutrition in one meal.
Protein is important but is better found in chicken and seafood, Legumes or vegetables than red meat. If possible, It would be beneficial for you to consult with a nutritionist to make sure your food intake is balanced, There is good fat and bad fat etc...
The main thing is to not quit, Even if you slip a little, Don't give up, Get right back to it.
I am 50 years old and my menu and intake was formulated by a nutritionist, 2500 calories per day, 30 to 40 grams of fat, 25 grams of fiber.
If you put together a nutritional plan that you like, It will be a lot easier to stick with it.
 
PhilL said:
It's coming from the book by Dr. Joel Fuhrman, "Eat To Live".
I'm never hungry and I lost 65 lbs. last year. I expect to lose another 25 - 30 lbs. between now and September, and I will never go to bed hungry.

Cool huh?
Click to expand...

Not bad! And yes pretty Cool!
I am not familiar with his book.
I have always just eaten nutrient dense foods with low glycemic fruits/veg's, trying to keep my carbs to a total of 50% of my intake, rest from good fats and lean protein for the past 15 or so years.
Alot like a Mediterranean diet I guess.

Whatever it takes to get healthy, I am game and a listener!
 
IDAY 2---APRIL 10, 2013

Breakfast
I felt good when I woke up from my 2 hr nap at the tail end of my 24 hr shift. I thought, "wow! This is pretty cool. I'm not even really hungry. A bit, but not really. I bought some kiwi yesterday, so I decided to try a couple of those for breakfast, along with a couple strawberries that were almost as large as the kiwi. I threw in about 1.5-2 oz. of peanuts. Good, filling breakfast.

Lunch
I haven't really gotten to eat lunch yet. I worked from 930 until about 200, now it driving home. I ate a big pear, another 1.75 oz of peanuts, and the rest of my plum grapes (about 7 grapes).

I'm going to try to eat a big salad later, but I have to take my wife to the doctor this afternoon as soon as we get home, so fruit will have to do for now.


Dinner
I honestly wasn't even hungry. I hardly slept last night, so I made some mashed beans for the next few days, cleaned the kitchen, ate a few beans and went to bed.
 
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Medi, it sounds like you're not eating enough.
You can't lose weight and keep it off by eating less, you need to eat more of the right foods. G.B.O.M.B.S. It's not just fruit & nuts.

Here's My Meal Plan: fruit for breakfast (whatever I feel like and as much as I want),
11AM a piece of fruit,
lunch 1PM is mashed beans and vegetables,
3PM snack a piece of fruit,
7PM Huge salad, (I use seeds & nuts in my dressing)
8PM dinner is mashed beans and vegetables,
9PM dessert fruit.
I eat every two hours or so.

I can eat a bunch of bananas, or a whole pineapple or cantaloup with blue berries on the side during the day. If I think I'm hungry I eat. Plus, greens, beans, onions & mushrooms at least twice a day (lunch & dinner). If there's anything I should be eating more of it's Berries, blueberries, strawberries, rasberries...

I believe you should eat to live, give your body what it needs to be healthy. The funny thing is that most of us don't know what real hunger feels like. We mistake a rumbling in our stomachs as a sign that we're hungry. Dr. Furhman refers to this as "Toxic Hunger". The salt, sugars, fats and processed crap we ingest actually makes us crave more of the same, which causes us to over-eat. But, the nutrition isn't there, your body is not being fed.

When you eat real food, you don't get that "Toxic Hunger". Your body will tell you when it really needs to be fed, you'll know that hunger in your mouth and throat, not a rumbling in the stomach. Your sense of taste will be heightened, food will taste better, but you will be less likely to overeat with real food. In fact the body once you lose that "Toxic Hunger" effect will only let you eat what you need. You'd be surprised how well your body runs once you give it real food.

Don't be afraid to eat.
 
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